The overwhelming support San Francisco voters gave Proposition G last week provided a clear mandate that the public is hungry for reform of the city's troubled Muni transit system, supporters of the measure say.

Backers collected nearly 75,000 signatures to place the initiative on the city ballot - the most ever in San Francisco - and it passed with 65 percent of the vote. Approval came amid continued rider frustration over problems with on-time performance and crowded buses and streetcars, and recent service cuts and fare hikes.

Dubbed by sponsors as "Fix Muni Now," the measure is designed to give management more power to improve service.

Prop. G eliminates the provision that guaranteed Muni operators the second-highest wage among their ranks nationally and what effectively became automatic annual pay hikes, even during tough financial times for the city. The pay guarantee was put in the City Charter more than four decades ago, and has maintained labor peace at the Bay Area's busiest transit agency. Muni averages about 700,000 boardings every weekday.

Pay now will be part of contract negotiations, ostensibly giving management more leverage to change work rules and side agreements that apply to such areas as training, discipline, route assignments and sick leave policy to make the deficit-plagued system run more effectively and efficiently. In addition, if the talks break down, both sides will head into arbitration, and the arbitrator must consider what effect the disputed provisions will have on fares and service.

"(Muni chief) Nat Ford and management have been given a tremendous tool to negotiate a fair and equitable contract," said Supervisor Sean Elsbernd, chief sponsor of the ballot measure. "The public and political pressure on them to follow through will be great."

The current contract is set to expire at the end of June, and both sides are gearing up for negotiations.

Muni management has retained Carol Stevens, a seasoned labor attorney who worked with BART administrators when the train operators threatened to strike during a contract standoff in 2009. The Muni operators union is preparing, as well, and is planning to bring in outside strategists to help bargain the next contract.

"They're going to have their people ready and we're going to have our people ready; it's not going to be like it was before," said Rafael Cabrera, executive vice president of Transport Workers Union Local 250-A, which represents the approximately 2,000 Muni operators.

Management and union representatives said they still are devising strategies and setting priorities.

"We're taking a look right now from a high-level approach to see what are the things you have to have to give you more flexibility to run a better system," said Muni operations chief John Haley.

For example, he said, Muni now spends a lot of time and money to train light-rail operators and may want to ensure the investment is for the long term by, perhaps, limiting the ability of operators to transfer to the bus fleet. Management also may push for more say over how operators are deployed to meet the fluctuating ridership demands.

For the operators, retaining seniority rights will be a high priority, as well as making sure that management's push for improved on-time performance doesn't compromise safety and provides operators time for bathroom breaks, Cabrera said.

The union, with help from the San Francisco Labor Council, tried to defeat the ballot measure, saying the proposal unfairly targeted operators without holding management accountable or going after the funding raids on Muni by other city departments.

"Muni needs to be fixed; there's no doubt about it," Cabrera said. "But I don't think scapegoating operators is the right way to do it."

Nolan, chairman of the Muni board, agreed that the ballot measure alone isn't the magical solution to Muni's long-standing problems. But, he said, it's an important step.

He also said he plans to meet with operators. "I want them to know they're not the enemy. The jobs they do aren't easy and their work is very important."